Anderson, Laurie Halse.
Speak. New York: Farrar Straus Giroux,
1999. Blume, Judy. Forever. New York: Simon
& Schuster, 1975. Canfield, Jack. Chicken Soup for
the Woman's Soul. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, 1996. Dahl, Roald. Matilda. New York: Puffin,
1988. Esquivel, Laura. Like Water for
Chocolate. New York: Doubleday, 1989. Klause Curtis, Annette.
Blood and Chocolate. New
York: Ballantine Publishing Group, 1997. Klause Curtis, Annette. The
Silver Kiss. New York: Ballantine Publishing Group, 1990. Levertov, Denise.
Poems:1968-1972. New York: New Directions Books, 1983. Martin, M. Ann. Missing Since
Monday. New York, Scholastic. 1986. McDaniel, Lurlene. I Want to
Live. New York: Bantam Books, 1995. Myers, Walter Dean. Hoops. New York:
Delacorte Press, 1981. Nilsson, Lennart. A Child is
Born. New York: Seymour Lawrence, 1990. Nixon, Joan. A Deadly Game. New York:
Dell Publishing, 1983. O'Dell, Scott. Zia. New York: Bantam
Doubleday Dell, 1976. Pelzer, David. A Child Called
It. Deerfield Beach: FL: Health Communications, 1995. Reeves, Adrienne Ellis. Heaven
Knows. St. Louis: Arabesque/Pinnacle, 1996. Reiff, Tana. The Family From
Vietnam. Belmont, CA: Simon and Schuster, 1979. Sleator, William.
Interstellar Pig. New
York: Puffin Books, 1984. The
William Sleator novel Interstellar
Pig is a great book. I like it because it is full of adventure and sci-fi action.
At times the book keeps you on the edge of your seat.
It has aliens on a search for a treasure - the pig.
What the pig is, is for you to find out; it isn’t an ordinary
pig. This book has some adult language so you don’t want to read
to a little kid. It is still a great book; the suspense will keep you
reading for hours. Steel, Danielle. Daddy. New York: Dell,
1990. Steel, Danielle. Zoya. New York: Dell
Publishing, 1989. Stine, R.L. Beach House. New York:
Scholastic, 1992. Tolan, Stephanie. Plague
Year. New York: Fawcett Juniper, 1990. Tolkien
J.R.R. Lord of the Rings. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1954. Tolkien, J.R.R, The Two Towers, Boston:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1954. The Two Towers is the second book of The
Lord of the Rings trilogy. It’s
full of amazing descriptions of enchanting and ominous places in a far
away place and time. This
book captures your imagination and whizzes you off to a world of
adventure and magic. It
reads at a swift pace, but it is a challenge to pronounce some of the
imaginary names of places and characters.
I would recommend that you embark on this wonderful journey by
starting with the first book, The Fellowship of the Ring, and
continue on. Wagner, Robin S. Portrait of A
Teenage Alcoholic. New York: Ballantine, 1975. Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York: Bantam,
1982. Yen Mah, Adeline, Chinese Cinderella. New
York; Dell Laurel- Leaf, 1999. If you like stories that really touch your heart Chinese
Cinderella is perfect. This story can change you in many ways. In
the way you look at children with no parents or parents who don't care
for them. Chinese Cinderella is about an unwanted child and her
feelings and thoughts of being rejected. This is a true story that the
author writes. The author knows how it feels because the story is about
her. If you enjoyed Cinderella then you would really enjoy Chinese
Cinderella.
Speak is a wonderful
book written by Laurie Halse Anderson. This book is about
a girl named Melinda who had been through a traumatic
summer night just before her freshman year. The book
walks you through her freshman year as she struggles to
find her voice and confront the shadows of her recent past. Easy to
read and understand, Speak is a powerfully moving book that
will keep you flipping those pages.
J.J.V. December 2001.Forever, written by Judy Blume,
is a great novel for teenagers! Katherine and Michael meet at a fondue
party and from there on their lives together begin. In Katherine and
Michael's relationship Katherine discovers herself. Their relationship
gets very intense when they decide they are ready for sex. When
Katherine goes to a summer camp far from home their feelings for each
other start to fade away. Will their relationship work? Forever
is a very realistic book because it tells how Katherine and Michael
fell in love and how they fell out of love and how they worked things
out.
K.M.S. December 2001.The book Chicken Soup for
the Woman's Soul, by Jack Canfield and others, is very
fun to read. For example I read a story about a woman who had a
husband in the war, it was called "A Soldier's Last Letter."
He wrote to tell her that he loved her and that he wouldn't be going
back home. This particular story made me cry, but the book is also
very fun to read. It tells what other women think about issues that
may or may not be happening to you.
S.F. May 2001.Matilda is a book about a girl
who is born into a family that doesn't like her. At a very young age
she starts to cook for herself. Later on she discovers that she has
magical powers which she uses for her own good and to put away her
mean principal. The only person that really understands her is her
teacher. With the help of her teacher and the whole school they get
together to give their principal a taste of her own medicine and get
rid of her for good! The San Francisco Chronicle says that this book
is "Marvelously Satisfying Entertainment". This book is full
of hilarious and surprising scenes that will make you want to read
more. I find this book very funny and appropriate for kids and adults
as well.
M.G. December 2001.Do you know somebody that's in love, but
they can't be with that person? This book is about a couple that are
in love, but it's impossible for them to be together. Tita is the
youngest of three daughters born to Mama Elena. The reason Tita can't
be with Pedro is because she must remain at home to care for her
mother in old age rather than to marry the man she loves. Mama Elena
chooses not to make an exception and instead arranges for Tita's older
sister to marry her boyfriend. I really recommend this book to
everybody - you will really enjoy it. This book touched a very soft
part in me.
D.M. December 2001.
Blood
and Chocolate,
by Annette Curtis Klause is a great horror book.
Vivian a teenage werewolf is in love with a human boy.
She has to decide between being with the boy she loves and
endangering her pack. Strange
murders start occurring where it appears the victims where killed by a
large animal. Vivian starts
to suspect that it could be her because she can’t remember what she
was doing the night they happened.
The ending was not what I expected, but it was very good.
G.G. March, 2002.
The Silver Kiss, by Annette
Curtis Klause, was a great horror book. A vampire named Simon is
searching for his brother to kill him, and a girl named Zoe is going
through a tough time because her mother is dying of cancer. Later in
the book the book the two meet and become friends and something more…
The ending is somewhat sad because it did not end how I expected.
G.G. December 2001.Denise Levertov wrote and published
wonderful books. Lots of books she wrote always were either books she
had made up or just created from her own memories. She loved to show
lots of feelings of what had happened to her as a young girl. Denise
had a warm heart and she always filled it with something warm or new.
Denise loved to write poems about bad and good times that she went
through. Denise said that the only reason she wanted to do poetry was
because she had felt in her heart that one day she could write poems.
I think that she wrote the book of poems because it shows that she
believes in herself and that when you make a goal you can achieve
anything you believe in. It also shows that she is not afraid to do
what she really wanted to do because in those days no women could do
anything like that or either it was the law or men just thought that
women could not do things like that. Denise is a very hard spoken
woman and hopes that one day she will fulfill her dreams.
C.V. December 2001.The book Missing Since
Monday by Ann M. Martin is a very interesting story to read.
This story is about a 16-year-old girl that had been taking care of
her 4-year-old sister for a week. On Monday morning, Maggie puts
Courtney on the bus to school. That afternoon Courtney doesn't come
home. She never made it to school that day. Maggie decided to call her
school to see what was going on. The secretary from Courtney's school
told her that she didn't attend school, so Maggie realized that
Courtney is missing. If you are interested in knowing who the
kidnapper of the story is, check out this book at a public or school
library. Trust me, you will like this story.
D.F. December 2001.The book I Want to
Live, by Lurlene McDaniel, is a very good realistic fiction
book. This book is about a fourteen year old girl named Dawn Rochelle
who has leukemia. Dawn would go to the doctor to get a check-up for
her cancer and get chemotherapy. She would sometimes get headaches
when she left the doctor's office and felt really awful and tired.
Dawn has a strong desire to make it to her fifteenth birthday. She
only has a 50% chance to live. The book is about her possibility of
survival and her closeness with her brother. They have a very special
relationship. Her brother Rob, celebrates her fifteenth birthday with
her and it is a special occasion. Not only does Dawn make it to her
fifteenth birthday, but she is the star of 3 more books.
S.R. May 2001.The novel Hoops, by Walter Dean
Myers is a great book to read if you're into basketball. It's about a
teenage boy who wants to play college ball. He joins a team in a
tournament where there are going to be college scouts. In the
beginning of the story it is clear that he and the coach do not like
each other. But as the tournament goes on they grow to love each
other. This story is full of visual words, it gives readers the idea
that they're watching a real life basketball game. Hoops is
not only a basketball novel - it is a novel about life. If you like
basketball and life, you will love Hoops.
L.F. December 2001.A Child is Born is a book worth
reading. This book really informed me about specific things that I
wanted to know. I also learned a lot of things I didn't know, which
was very interesting. Almost everything and anything you want to know
about birth is in this book. The pictures are remarkable and so
detailed. It shows and gives a lot of information that answered many
of my questions. I would strongly suggest this book to anyone
interested in birth, especially if you are a pregnant woman. If you
just want to know a few things or are just curious, I'm sure this book
will give you the information you need.
K.P. December 2001.A Deadly Game is a great story
to read. It is a story about four teens; Lisa , Teena, Bo, and Julian.
On their way home from a drama competition they are stranded out in
the middle of a storm . They come upon a deserted house where the they
are greeted by some strange owners who leave them in the house until
the Auto Club arrives. The house is filled with all kinds of gadgets
and deadly traps. Now they have to depend upon Lisa to use her magic
skills and find the deadly secret at the end of the corridor.
J.R. December 2001.Zia is an exciting book to read
because it has action parts but most of the book is emotional. For
example, Zia wanted to find her aunt Karana who was left behind on the
Island. Zia has never seen her aunt before so she wants to meet her.
She goes through a great deal of adventurous experiences through the
story. Furthermore, she and her brother go on a journey to the Blue
Dolphins Island to try and find her aunt Karana. They were thinking
that it was as easy as it looks but they found out that it was
difficult. You'll find out all the adventures they had by going out to
the sea by themselves and that it was really dangerous. This book is
not the same as other books in which they only have a happy ending but
this book has both a sad and happy ending.
Y.G. December 2001.A Child Called It is a heart
touching story written by David Pelzer. All the people that have read
this book found out how important a child's life is and how it really
feels to have parents that don't care about their children. In this
book you will find out what the true meaning of suffering is. You will
read about the most unimaginable and cruel things that can be done to
a child. I would recommend this heart-breaking story to everyone that
likes reading sad books.
C.P. December 2001.James and Glennette's brother Bill had
been childhood friends. So James was like an older brother to
Glennette. James and Bill would always tease Glennette when they were
younger. once James got older he moved to Alaska to go to college.
Glennette stayed in her hometown (in North Carolina) to become a
social worker. One day James came back for a visit. Glennette's family
greeted James at the airport. James glowed once he saw Glennette for
the first tiem in 15 years. He thought she grew up to be a beautiful
woman. That was the moment he fell in love with her. This was the
reason James stayed and went to school in North Carolina to study law.
Glennette hadn't yet realized he was falling in love with her.
Glennette was going through hard times at her job. She started telling
James her problems. The more she confided in him the more she realized
he had grown into a man, and wasn't the same little boy that used to
tease her when they were younger. She was confused abotu her feelings
toward him. Until she realized she couldn't be without him.
N.R. May 2001.The Family From
Vietnam is a story of a Vietnamese mother and her family. The
story takes place at the end of the Vietnam War when the Americans
were leaving. It tells about the struggles they had to go through to
leave their country and to come to America. They wanted to start a new
life. Mai and Set had three children named Vinh, Bao, and Thi. They
were very sad to leave their home in Vietnam, but they needed to
because of the war. The family's dreams came true when they got
settled in America, had work, a home and friends and seemed to live
happily ever after. California was where they finally ended up. I
would recommend this book to others because it is an interesting
story. The thing I did not like was how it was written. The questions
in "Thinking It Over" confused me. Other books that I have
read did not have questions at the end of each chapter. It was like
how a textbook is written.
K.S. December 2001.
R.A.P.J. March 2002.This was a great book, it really touched
a soft spot in me. The story is about a mother that leaves her family
to pursue her college education. She leaves her husband with three
kids to raise on his own. After their mother leaves, the children find
themselves getting into a lot of problems. However, no matter what
seems to go wrong, their Daddy is always there. He always believes
that his wife will come back and reunite with her family, but that
never happens. Eventually with his guidance and love, his family gets
through every hard time and stays together. I would definitely suggest
that anyone with a love for romance and love, read this book. It was
awesome and brought a tear to my eye.
A.G. May 2001.The book Zoya, by Danielle Steel,
is a fascinating story about a young girl from an imperial family that
ruled Russia and how the land and her family were destroyed. Zoya
learns to live on her own at a young age, the years passing her by
while she struggles through life in a new country. This book has its
own story line but with an "Anastasia" feeling to it. I
would recommend this book to anyone who reads about romance, drama,
war, and princesses. As you can see it has a little bit of every
thing, so I believe it is suitable for young teenagers and up.
E.A. December 2001.This book called Beach
House is a good book. It is about 7 kids who are on summer
vacation. The characters names are Ross, Amy, Denny, Maia, Stuart,
Ashley, and Buddy. They are all very close friends who were hanging
out at the beach. One of their friends named Buddy told them that he
owned the beach house. It is also about a killer who is stalking them
one at a time, never leaving a club. S.R. May 2001.
As many people go through difficult
times, Plague Year can relate to so many instances in even our
own common day-to-day existence. Though our circumstances may not be
as fantastic and grievous as in this book, the over all tones of fear,
common segregation, and the need to find a place in the social
structure of society within the book play "Devil's Advocate"
to our own everyday beliefs. Stephanie Tolan, the author of Plague
Year, masterfully manipulates emotions through words and circumstance,
bringing together a book of suspense, thrill, and overwhelming
admiration for one student's ability to rise above the adversity of
everyday life. Over all, I was extremely impressed with the book, by
its content, the way it was written, and a remarkable ornate plot
line. If you enjoy a book filled with hidden messages, important to
our own morals and rousing emotions, I strongly suggest reading
Plague Year. You'd be surprised at what you'd learn about
yourself.
B.M. December 2001.
The
J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings is really good; I actually read
it. First, I read The Hobbit - it is like the introduction to
the trilogy. That is where
they find the Ring. It has
dragons and very big spiders. The
trilogy starts with the Fellowship of the Ring.
They begin their journey. Then
in The Two Towers they continue their quest.
Finally in the Return of the King they end the mission and
go home. Throughout the
series they encounter goblins, orcs, elves, dwarves, wizards, hobbits
and many other strange creatures of Middle Earth.
This series has very suspenseful times, as well as exciting and
funny times. Due to many
war and fight scenes, it probably is not the best book for toddlers.
Read them and see if you are brave enough to get to the end.
R.A.P.J. December, 2002.
J.J.V. March 2002.I read Portrait Of A
Teenage Alcoholic and I really enjoyed reading this book. It
was about a teenage girl who became an alcoholic because she thought
it would solve all her problems. I think young teens should read this
book because it could really knock some sense into you. It will help
you to understand if this is something that you really want to do. You
will put yourself in a lot of pain and it won't just be you - you will
put your whole family in pain also. There are a lot of situations that
you can get yourself into by becoming an alcoholic because you will do
a lot of stupid stuff just to support your habit. Therefore I would
recommend this book for all those teenagers who think it would be fun
to drink.
S.A.V. December 2001.The author of Night
takes you through his experiences in the concentration camps. He tells
how they had to ride in cattle cars with no room at all. He tells you
how the SS officers starved them so that they would be too weak to
revolt. I personally loved the book. I was really into it, and almost
had to be forced to put it down. Anyone who likes to read about the
Holocaust should definitely read this book; you won't regret it.
E.L.F. December 2001.
V.C. March, 2002.